Through the Years
by Midou-kun
Summary: 3 years after Sai's disappearance, Hikaru has still not fully gotten over the loss. But when a new child, Midou-kun, faces Hikaru, he finally realizes his and Sai's place on the road to the Hand of God.
1. Preface

**Hikaru no Go – Through the Years**

Author's Notes: This is the second version of my fanfic, "Hikaru no Go – Through the Years." When I posted the first one, it wasn't really meant to be read. I put it up because I wanted someone from a forum I was on to have access to it, and since it exceeded the max post length, I decided to use FF.net instead. I put it up there without any semblance of proper format or syntax, or any effort at all to make it aesthetically pleasing. I didn't think it would matter. Nobody would read it, right?

Well, somehow it _did_ get read, and it even got a few reviews. So I thought it was a real pity to leave the poor thing in such a bad state. I decided to actually split the thing into chapters, go back and make paragraphs out of my large jumble of nothingness. And this is the result! Hikaru no Go – Through the Years, version 2.0!

The title I had originally planned for this fic is "Wakaranai." It fits in perfectly with the theme of the story, but predictably, it was taken. Desperate, I began ransacking my hard drive for any sort of inspiration for a new title. I stumbled upon an anime mp3 for the movie Hoshi no Koe (which I highly recommend to everyone, by the way ^_^), entitled "Through the Years and Far Away." 

            Well, it was better than nothing.

            Anyways, here it is. Very little content has been changed from the original release. Mostly it's just been edited for syntax and format, and having been split into chapters. Enjoy! =)


	2. Chapter 1: A Chance Encounter

**Author's Notes: Here it is! The first chapter! Please note that this is not meant to be a self-insert story. I like the name Midou-kun, that's all. ^^;**

**Also, I am quite aware of the fact that the part with the ball falling into the correct pattern with the stones is a really long shot. I know it's stupid, and unrealistic, and retarded. Believe me, it was as painful for me to right as it is for you to read. Sorry, but I have to carry the storyline along somehow.**

** Oh, yes, and I don't own Hikaru no Go, either. Try to contain your disappointment ;)**

The last day of summer had not been a disappointment. The sun's smiling rays preformed their final duty with diligent joy, spreading comfort and warmth to the city of Tokyo. It was days like these, Shindou thought to himself, not impervious to the natural beauty of the day, that made him almost wish he wasn't a professional Go player. Days like these made him wish he could put down the stones, just for once, and waste his time outside, like any normal child was doing, ringing laughter through the thick Tokyo atmosphere. But, as Hikaru looked at the board in front of him, the complex position presented to him, he knew they were hollow wishes, empty hopes. The most beautiful day of the warmest summer of the most bountiful year could no longer rival the familiar play of black against white, winding itself up the field of wood that was a Goban, woven together with simple rules and profound logic. The soft tap of the slate and shell pieces were more beautiful to his ears than the softest bird's notes, the rich scent of Kaya wood more appetizing then the first flowers of spring. The game of Go, more of an art form than a game, to Shindou's experienced mind, had changed him; from an ignorant, brash child to a silent adult, radiating layers of self-control and wisdom. In turn, he had done much to change the game, spearheading the anticipated new wave of players that would change the axis the Go world spun upon, and threatening to be the center of it when he reached the limit of his potential. It was a strong relationship, a deep bond that would take much to be broken, and was being strengthened regularly, testing his dedication to his chosen art. Sai's disappearance had been, perhaps, the strongest threat to Hikaru's ongoing career, and now that he fully understood Sai's position in the path to the Hand of God, perhaps the strongest guarantee to the continuation of his destiny. 

            A gentle breeze from the outside flew in the open window, blowing Hikaru's golden bangs into his line of vision. He gently positioned them behind his ears with one hand, granting him a full view of the Tsumego presented in front of him. It was a complex situation, involving the whole board. Touya Akira had first presented it to him, challenging him, a sport they often partook in nowadays. Each tried to outdo the other, proving their superiority and vying for the final, unreachable goal. Akira had been at a standstill to this problem, after trying to master it for weeks. He had finally presented it to Shindou, reluctantly. Akira was of the opinion that the lower-left was the key to black's eventual victory in the position, since building a thickness there would allow the player to draw the rest of the white stones towards it. Touya's father had assured them that, this being a Yose problem, would yield only one possible solution, and they would know it when they found it. Confident in Akira's abilities, Hikaru had tried finding the key in other parts of the board, particularly the fairly simple position in the center. If played correctly, black could create a Ko threat strong in enough in the center to be used in conjunction with the easily-attained Ko in the top, to create a chain reaction that would lead black to an eventual victory either way, despite the lost territory in the abandoned lower-left. However, hours in front of the Goban, in the silent room of the Japanese Go Institute, had not yielded the position's secrets to Hikaru. He dropped the stone in his fingers, letting it fall back into the bamboo bowl at his feet, and hung his head. 

            "I have nothing," he whispered softly to the Goban, the traditional line of resignation. Getting up from his knees, he preformed a final bow of respect towards the board, which had so far proved to be his superior, and walked out of the room, leaving the indoor shoes by the door. A short walk would clear his mind, and he would continue his day-long battle with the Tsumego. He entered the elevator, mechanically entering the button for the ground floor, his mind still struggling with the simple shape of the stones in the center. He knew that one move, one simple, brilliant move, would allow black to create a Ko threat that could not be ignored. He tried entering Sai's frame of mind, a tactic he turned to only when a better one did not present itself, to try and remember what the thousand-year-old Go master would have done. Sai was never afraid of sacrificing useless stones, soldiers that had preformed their duty. However, in the position his center was in, allowing any capture of black's stones would give the white group stretching across the side its much-needed second eye, which would destroy the chance black still had of making it through Yose.

            The elevator doors opened, and the noise that was cloaked over the main lobby of the popular building pulled Hikaru's concentration away from Go. Noise seemed to filter away from the path that he walked. His face was very well known. Despite his seemingly reckless Beginner Dan Series match-up against Touya Meijin, he was considered among the best young Pros his age, only one Akira-shaped step away from number one. Voices turned to a soft whisper as he passed, and he heard his being mentioned several times, although usually accompanied by that of his inevitable rival, Touya Akira.

            Passing through the final doors of the building finally brought quiet back into his world, allowing Hikaru to once again ponder Go. His mind, used to exploring the complicated paths of stones, reading ahead, calculating, analyzing, always keeping the rest of the board in mind, even when dealing with a local situation, considered all the possible outcomes of every fight he could ignite against the white player.

His attention was temporarily drawn as he walked past a nearby baseball diamond. A group of children, approximately his age, if not a bit younger, were busily engaged in a heated baseball game, doubtlessly enjoying the final day before the recommencement of school. The changing of seasons had lost itself on Hikaru, after becoming a Pro Go player; school was not something he had to worry himself about. 

He watched with mild interest as a boy stepped up to bat, tension obvious on his face. Although Hikaru could not claim to be much of a baseball fan, the recognizable position of having all bases loaded made it clear, even to him, that this was an important bat. A good hit could net the boy's team a win, and Hikaru knew from experience how stressful a deciding move could be. The pitcher wound up, and whipped the ball towards the catcher. The batter swung desperately, a bit sloppily, and missed by a wide margin. He shook his head, raised his bat up again, and prepared himself for the second pitch. It brought the same results, and Hikaru winced at his poor technique. He shook his head, and started walking on his way. There was no chance that that kid could touch such a well-thrown ball. 

            _Crack!_

 Hikaru's head whipped to the side at the earsplitting sound of wood connecting with metal. He looked just in time to see the batter drop his bat and run desperately towards first base, but even the inexperienced Hikaru could tell that a run was not necessary- it was a direct enough hit to send the baseball soaring up over the fence, landing near Hikaru's feet.

            He bent down to pick it up, and froze. His eyes struggled to focus on the ground in front of him. He took a step back, and looked again at the ground in front of him. Yes, it was unmistakable. Rocks, randomly placed on the ground from high winds and careless walkers, were sprawled out on the lawn, replaying a shape that had become familiar to Hikaru that day. The unique position of the center board was neatly played out on the ground, and the baseball had landed in an empty space, wedged between two adjacent stones. It was a solution Hikaru had already tried, and found to be incorrect.

            Although he could hear the children in the ballpark yelling at him to return the ball, he ignored their request, still enraptured by the amazing coincidence displayed at his feet. Finally, with a growl of frustration, one of the players, the one who had hit the home run, got up off the bench, jumped the fence, and ran up to Hikaru.

            "Hey!" He growled angrily, peeved at Shindou's inconsideration. "You could have given us back that ball!"

            Hikaru shook his head, barely hearing the boy's words, concentrating once again on all the possible paths of the stones. The player finally noticed Hikaru's keen concentration on the ground. He turned his head, looking at the same place. His eyes similarly flashed in recognition. "Wow…" he whispered. "What a coincidence."

            Hikaru shook his head. "Not really. The answer's wrong."

            The boy cocked his eyebrow. "Well, yes it is, but it still is pretty amazing." He bent down, picked up the ball, but did not return it to his team. Instead, he carried it over to the left of the stone it had been surrounding, and let it drop. "There," he said decisively. "Now it's right."

            A quiet derogative snort came out of Shindou's mouth. "No, it's still not. White can now trap black in _geta_. Game over for black."

            "Not necessarily. Look, white is in atari here. If he goes for the _geta__, _he'll lose the corner, and the net won't work anymore. So white has to defend the atari, which means black can play the _geta_, and from then on…"

            Hikaru did not need to listen to the rest of the boy's explanation. It was clear now where Hikaru had gone amiss in his solution. The atari that needed to be created had never occurred to Hikaru, largely in part because it brought black into a very poor, easily-cut shape that he would never allow to appear in a pro game. His vision had been clouded by his perceptions of what good shape was, a mistake he had often feared making. The boy in front of him, Hikaru did not doubt, was a pro of the highest caliber, not unwilling to play the best move, even if it offended his own perceptions of what good and bad shape was. Hikaru had not yet reached that level. Moves like those did not even cross his mind. "You…" Hikaru said, softly. "What's your name?"

            The boy raised his head from the position on the grass. He looked confused, but not apprehensive. "Midou Ashitaka," he responded. "And you?"

            Hikaru's brain fought to place the name, remembering all the pages of Weekly Go he'd read. One year had passed since he had passed the Pro Exam, and he hadn't paid much attention to the new Pros before that time. The boy still looked young, possibly three years younger than himself. "Shindou Hikaru. How long have you been a Pro, Midou-kun?"

            Surprise registered on Ashitaka's face. "Pro? What do you mean?"

            "How long ago did you pass the Pro Exam?"

            "For Go?" He asked, amusement beginning to replace the confusion on his features.

            "What else? That was a five-Dan Tsumego!"

            The sandy haired boy burst into a fit of hilarity. "Pro? You thought I was a Pro!" Hikaru's eyes narrowed, his heart sinking. "Wow!" The boy coughed, choking on his own laughter "you must be a pretty lousy player if you think _I'm_ good enough to be a Pro!"

            "I am Shindou Hikaru, Three-Dan Pro since last year! That problem, it's… not even Touya Akira could solve it!"

            The merriment instantly dissolved from Midou's face. A disgusted, almost angry look replaced it. "What an insult! You can't possibly be a Pro! That Tsumego was nothing, a cinch! Touya Akira could play circles around you!" He bent down, picked up the baseball, and angrily kicked the ground, sending the stone formation flying into the street. He heftily jumped the fence in two steps, and ran back to the playing field. Hikaru watched the boy run back, not taking a look behind him. The sting of angry tears was threatening to break loose from Hikaru's eyes, but he fought them back, continuing on his way. He replayed Midou's solution in his mind, hoping to find a flaw in its logic, some way to discredit the boy. But as Hikaru thought about its skillful, courageous path, he had to admit that both he and Akira had been thoroughly wrong in their approach to the position. 

            He found that he had unconsciously walked himself to the Go Salon that Akira almost always dwelled in. Climbing up the stairs to the building, he pushed open the door to the room that the games were played in. The cashier, a young lady who had treated Hikaru to the first game of his life, smiled kindly as he walked in. "Ah, Shindou-kun! Akira's in the back."

            He bowed, shallowly as to not embarrass the girl. "Thank you." He walked past the rows of tables, games in progress between old men, inexperienced positions, and simple solutions playing themselves across the rows of Gobans. Hikaru could have won any game for any side in the room, and was indeed doing so mentally as he crossed the aisle of chairs and boards, but instead walked past the adults to a small hidden row, enveloped in darkness, separate from the rest of the Salon. There, the only real opponent stood, puzzling over a position that had become all too familiar to the boy. 

            Akira looked up from his board, an expression of joy lighting his already soft features. "Shindou-kun!" He stood up, bowed, and sat back down. Hikaru bowed likewise, and took the seat next to him. He examined the Tsumego to assure that it was the same one, took up a black stone from Akira's bowl, and placed it in the position Midou had shown him.

            Silently, Akira shook his head. "Won't work, white can _geta_."

            Without saying a word, Hikaru took a white stone, and put it diagonally adjacent to the black, initiating a common net position. Akira nodded. "Yes, that's _geta_ now. Black can't escape."

            Shindou took a stone in between his fingers, and slammed it down on the topside of another white stone, forming an empty triangle, a position that was avoided by pros like the plague. Akira snorted derisively. "Come now, Hikaru, that's a bad move if I ever saw one."

            He silently continued the solution, slamming a gleaming white stone underneath his _geta_ starter, putting black's lone soldier in Atari. He dug around for a black stone, adding another piece to the empty triangle. Akira began to insult Shindou's play further, until he saw where Hikaru was going. Although a bad shape had been formed, and black was about to lose a stone to _atari_, a position that would normally mean sudden death in a corner, the rest of the solution began to reveal itself through the hazy mists of his mind. White could complete the _geta_, capturing one of black's stones, and creating one eye, but it left black a position that was one of the best Ko threats he had ever seen. Two consecutive moves would bring white to its knees, and failure to respond to it would turn the tables towards black with the one Ko point anyways. Either way Akira looked at it, black had won. Turning from a position of vast tactical inferiority into a winning combination… the mark of someone truly gifted. "Do you see it now?" Hikaru broke his silence.

            Akira nodded, dumbfounded. "Yes, it's… genius. It's pure genius, Shindou-kun."

            "Thank you," Hikaru cracked a grin, "but it's not mine." Hikaru explained the story of Midou-kun, his outstandingly clear vision, and the heated exchange that had followed. When his voice stopped, Akira's expression stood dumbfounded. Hikaru grinned and resisted giggling at his rival's face.

            "Well…" Akira began, after regaining his composure. "I seem to remember a similar brash young Go player come into the Go Salon and diligently best me at my own game." He winked. "Maybe there's a thousand-year old ghost possessing Midou-kun too?"

            Hikaru forced himself to laugh, but in reality, Sai's disappearance still tore holes through him. The ancient player's tactics, calm demeanor, smooth voice… the memory of that last dream concerning Sai, were all things the young Pro was trying desperately to forget. 

            "Besides," Akira said with a sly wink. "Midou-kun was right. I _can_ play circles around you."

            Recognizing the badly concealed challenge, Hikaru forced all thoughts of Sai out of his mind. It was not out of disrespect – rather, it was what his friend would have wanted him to do. To let go, forget about the past, and focus on the moment. Sai realized his place, Hikaru thought as he preformed Nigiri, and it was about time he did too.


	3. Chapter 2: I will become a god on this b...

Ever since his disappearance, Sai had appeared to Hikaru only once, in a dream. The memory of that night, remembering his old friend's ambiguous smile, still brought a fresh tear to Hikaru's eye—a tear quickly wiped away, of course. However, that night, it happened again. This time, Sai was in front of a Goban, and oddly thick one with an inverted pyramid carved in it's bottom. It was not at all similar to the one Shindou had in his room, and it wasn't like the ones used by the Nihon-Kiin. Despite the unusual Goban, the position on it was quite familiar. Not questioning the surrealism of the situation, Hikaru kneeled down in front of the Goban across from his old teacher, and bowed. Sai did the same, keeping the same palpable silence as in his last vision. Hikaru felt like shouting out loud and explaining to Sai just how much he'd grown since he'd disappeared. Instead, Hikaru simply took a black stone and placed it in the key point. Sai beamed happily at Hikaru, and took a stone from his own bowl, laying it in the next spot of the prefabricated solution. With confidence, Shindou continued playing out the solution with his old friend, until it finally reached it's conclusion and it became evident that Shindou had indeed cleared it. Bowing in defeat, Sai cleared the board of the stones, while Hikaru watched him wistfully.

            "Sai… I've grown so much since you left."

            The raven-haired man looked up, his delicate features displaying a sad, meaningful smile. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, he nodded.

            "I play Touya almost every day now—and I've played his father too, now that he's in retirement." He could feel the familiar sensation of helpless tears begin to form in the corners of his eyes, but he fought them back, in silent refusal to show any weakness to his former mentor. Instead, he forced his voice to rise in pitch and intensity to hide it's dangerous wavering, until he was almost yelling his words. "I told Touya-kun about you, Sai. He had to know—he deserved to know."

            The same smile, never changing, was the only answer afforded.

            "Sai!" Hikaru shouted at the top of his lungs. "Say something! Do something! Give me some sort of clue that you can hear me, that you can understand!" Tears were now beyond hiding, falling in streams down his cheeks. "Say something! Tell me not to get ahead of myself, that I'm still learning! Beg me to let you play! _Anything!_"

            A look almost of pity marred Sai's features, but his smile did not falter.

            Hikaru could feel the emotions in him rising to a crescendo.   Reminiscence and joy began to be replaced by anger, resentment towards Sai's stubbornness. "Why did you disappear? Why did you leave me when I needed you the most?" He voiced the question he'd been asking himself ever since his friend's disappearance. He did not expect an answer, nor did he get one. He could feel the familiar heat come in his face, the heat of annoyance and anger. "You said you wanted to achieve the Hand of God! Why did you give up on that? Why did you give up on me!?"

            "Sai… I need you. Come back…" But Hikaru had crossed the line, passed into waters not meant to be crossed. His tears began to cloud his vision, and the visage in front of him blurred, becoming a swirl of color, that faded into nothingness.

            A single tear rolled down Hikaru's cheek from his closed eye, and fell to his pillow, leaving a small, dark mark.

            With a discontented sigh, Midou slammed his books into his backpack roughly, slung it across his shoulder, and marched out of the room as the bell signaling the end of the day rang. The first day of school had been as boring as ever. This was to be expected, of course. Nothing seemed to interest him as of late. Not even baseball, his old hobby, captivated him as much as it used to. He felt that he had become the master of the lucky win, which brought along with it a certain reputation for unreliability which did little to soothe his falling ego.  

            "Ano! Midou-kun!" A familiar voice called out across the schoolyard. His head shot up, hoping one of his friends was looking for him. When he caught the eye of the strange boy in the park yesterday, he bowed his head again and pretended not to hear him. This did not seem to deter the golden-banged boy at all. "Midou!" He insisted, running up behind him, putting a hand on his shoulder, and spinning him around. "Hey! I was calling you from all the way back there!"

            "Oh, really?" Midou said, eyes lowered. "I didn't hear you, sorry."

            The boy beamed. "Don't worry about it. It is noisy around here."

            "I'm sorry, I think I forgot your name."

            "Shindou. Shindou, Hikaru."     

            "Ah, well then, Shindou-kun, it's been nice seeing you again. Sayonara." He turned on his heel to leave, but the hand on his shoulder did not cease, and made him lose his balance. He turned on Shindou angrily. "What? What do you want now?"

            Hikaru's expression had turned serious. His eyes were intense and the childish smile was gone, replaced with a look of determination. "I want to see your strength."

            Midou rolled his eyes. "Oh, not that again. Go take a kid's class or something." 

            "I'm a 3-dan pro."

            "You're a 30-kyu piece of crap. Now let me go."

            Hikaru's stare was boring straight into Midou's eyes. "Play me. One game."

            "No."

            "I'll take you to Touya Akira if you win." 

            Midou's eyes gleamed, and he stopped dead in his tracks. After a few seconds, he snorted derisively. "No way. You don't know him."

            "Like hell I don't. He's my rival."

            "How about this. If I play you, you leave me alone!"

            "What if I win?"

            "You still leave me alone."

            Hikaru sighed in despair. The kid's stubbornness reminded him of Mitani-kun. Still, Hikaru prided himself on being more stubborn than anyone else he knew, and if it was a battle of wills, he always won. "Alright, then." Hikaru said, not at all intending to keep his word.

            Midou snorted. "Follow me." Continuing through the schoolyard and onto the crowded Tokyo street, he began to walk down a narrow alleyway in between a deep row of buildings. 

Shindou held a pace three steps behind the boy, following him through the crowded streets of Tokyo, until they finally arrived at a small, two-story corner bakery, the kind that had housing on the upper floor. The cloth roof proudly bore the kana "Ashitaka." 

Midou walked in, and held the door open for Shindou as he walked in. He took two buns in his hand from one of the many stocked shelves containing bread and pastries, threw one to Hikaru and proceeded to feast on his. 

"Okaasan!" He called across the storefront and into the back kitchen where the baked goods were being produced. "I've got this kid here, we're going upstairs to play a quick game of Go!"

            A woman's head popped between the curtained partition that separated the store from the kitchen. A kindly smile lit her face at the sight of Hikaru, and she adjusted the cloth wrapped around her head. "New friends on your first day?" She beamed wider, not seeing Midou's angry scowl at her comment. "Hello, Midou's friend. Have fun. Are you good at Go?"

            Hikaru bowed politely, nodded, and waited for Midou's mother to return to the kitchen before taking a bite out of his loaf, which was surprisingly delicious. Midou dropped his backpack behind the counter of the store, and ran up a set of stairs in the back wall. "Up here!" He called behind him.

            Hikaru carefully made his way up the old, creaky stairs, and couldn't help but get the impression that the facilities were in dire need of repair. He followed Midou's retreating back into a small room at the end of the hallway. The small, crowded space was filled with posters of famous Japanese and American baseball players, none of which Shindou recognized. A small green futon lay over at the back of the room. "Can we play Go here?" Hikaru asked, wondering what the point of going upstairs had been. 

            "Of course. I've got a Goban in my closet." Hikaru could see socks and other undergarments flying out the open closet doors as Midou dug through its contents. He finally brought out a dusty old Goban, which had obviously not been put to use in recent days. However, seeing it caused Hikaru to stagger backwards, a hand in front of his chest as if to ward off evil spirits. "That Goban!"

            Midou, on his knees, looked up from the Goban he was carrying in his arms with puzzled eyes. "Yes, _this Goban. Is there something wrong with it, mister 3-dan pro?"_

            It was unmistakable—the unidentified Goban Hikaru had seen in his dream was before him right now. The odd thickness, the inverted pyramid, it was all exactly how he had seen it. He shook his head slowly. "No… there's nothing wrong with it, Midou-kun."

            He glared suspiciously. "Whatever. Let's just get this game over with." He breathed discontentedly and handed Hikaru the bowl of white stones. He gave a short, curt bow, just low enough so as to not be rude. Hikaru did likewise. Taking the lid off of his bowl, and placing it in front, he waited patiently for the first move. After playing dozens of professional games, Hikaru was not used to the speed with which Midou-kun triumphantly laid his first stone. 

            Right on Tengen.

            Hikaru gasped, his eyes narrowing. It had been a long time since he'd seen such a strange, and yet fashionably interesting move. This child was either very confident, or very stupid. 

 Midou smirked from across the Goban. "That's called a stone," he taunted. "You play them on the intersections of these pretty lines."

            Hikaru ignored the rudeness, and instead proceeded to play Sai's favorite opening hand, the upper-right komoku. Midou responded with the lower left. After all four corners had been secured, Hikaru quickly surveyed the board. Midou had a senrensei position, and although it was accidental, it was not a bad opening at all. Hikaru knew that, against such a strong opponent, he could not let himself fall behind in influence. He opted for his own senrensei position, with a stone one space above the side hoshi. 

After a few seconds, Midou lifted up his hand, a stone firmly squeezed between his fingers, and placed his piece confidently in a pincer movement on his first stone. Hikaru could hardly contain his surprise at the unusual moves being played. An invasion this early in the game was unheard of in the professional league. Hikaru decided that an urgent point in his opponent's incredibly loose shape had to be taken advantage of, and played on the lower side hoshi. Midou grinned, thinking Hikaru had missed the pincer that had been started. He eagerly completed the maneuver by performing a knight's move on the other side of his corner stone, and Hikaru confidently placed a stone diagonally towards the center. His earlier respect for Midou's quick solution to the Tsumego problem had quickly begun to dissolve, and was soon replaced by a ominous dread that the whole incident had been pure luck. His technique was horrible and amazingly over-concentrated. He had begun to build a wall right off the bat, and as it stood, had a line of ten stones stretching across the top side, despite it only being the twenty fifth turn. As the game progressed, Hikaru could see that, in fact, Midou-kun really had no idea what he was doing. His clumsy play, and his poor knowledge of joseki, swiftly lost him the game. It was not necessary to bother with the counting of the territory. 

Midou bowed his head, and softly said "Makemashita." Hikaru closed his eyes, inhaled, exhaled. What a disappointment. He had really expected a little more of a fight. "I guess I was wrong about you." Hikaru said.

"I guess I could say the same thing." Midou replied, an edge of awe and humility having crept into his voice. "You are strong."

"I'm sorry, but… that Tsumego from the other day. It was hard. I don't know how you solved it at this level."

"I continue to maintain the fact that it was incredibly easy."

"It wasn't. It had Touya Akira stumped." Shindou insisted. He brought a rolled up paper from his pocket and put it on top of the Goban, letting it rest above the stones that were still on it, still fighting out their intense battles amongst each other, yielding an unchanging testimony. 

"What is this?" Midou picked up the paper, leafed through it.

"It's the Weekly Go from two years ago. When I passed the Pro Exam. The results are on page eighteen. I thought you might like to see it."

Midou eagerly flipped to that page, and his face froze when he saw the three small pictures in the bottom right corner. "It's—it's you!"

Shindou nodded. "Along with Waya and Ochi, two friends of mine."

"You _did_ pass the Pro Exam!" His eyes filled with wonder. 

Hikaru wordlessly pressed down on the floor, helping himself up to his feet. He bowed shallowly. "Thank you for the game." With that, he spun on his foot and headed towards the door.

"Wait!" Midou shouted, his hand stretched out after him, a pleading look in his eyes. "Could you… I don't know, maybe… teach me sometime?" He cracked a half-smile.

Hikaru was about to politely decline, but stopped suddenly, the words caught in his throat. In the young boy's eyes, in his expression, in his posture, he could see an intense creativity, a refreshing new outlook. He could see burning ambition and unbridled joy. And, just for a moment, Hikaru thought he could see the mirror image of himself, reflected in those eager eyes.

_The Goban in his dream… the one Sai had shown him. Did it mean something?_

 He smiled gently. "I think I will. Midou-kun." He continued through the door, and left.

As soon as Hikaru had left, Midou looked down at the finished game on the Goban. Now, why had he gone and done that? It would be a waste of time for both of them. He could never learn Go. He couldn't even pass Chemistry. He sighed, rolling his eyes, as he cleared his Goban of the stones on it, placing them in their respective bowls. He might as well give Go a chance, he thought as he fastened the lids. He didn't seem to be good at anything else. 

The first week of school hadn't gone out the way it had come in. The warm, gentle breeze had been replaced by a biting cold draft that pushed the needles of rain right into Hikaru's face as he made the long journey to Midou's bakery. The small umbrella he'd brought proved to be no match for nature's fierce onslaught. All of Hikaru's strength was centered into making sure the fragile green umbrella didn't blow him away. He was offered a reprieve from nature's onslaught at the sight of Midou's bakery looming in front of him a few minutes later. He quickened his pace to a fast jog, and bolted inside the building, glad to be free of the rain.

"Konnichiwa!" He called out as he closed his umbrella, and tied it up. The curtained partition once again opened, and Midou's mother's head popped out, beaming. "Ah, hello, Hikaru-kun."

Hikaru bowed to the appropriate depth. "May I ask where Midou-kun is?"

"I believe he's upstairs in his room. He's been awfully occupied with Go ever since you taught him. It's doing him a world of good."

Hikaru's jaw dropped and he could feel his eyes widening. "He has?"

"Yes, it's true. He's at it right now."

            Quickly bowing once more, Hikaru hopped up the stairs and ran down the hall to his pupil's room, throwing open the door. Inside, Midou's familiar face looked up, furrows of concentration still etched in his forehead. "Hey."

            Hikaru peered at the Goban, once again shocked at its resemblance to the one in his memory. The stones were arranged in the patterns of low-level Tsumego. Hikaru watched attentively as Midou finished placing the last stone that comprised the problem in place, his head turned towards a book he had propped on his knees. A basic tangle of stones yielded an opportunity for black to sacrifice one of his stones to capture a sizeable amount of enemy soldiers. Midou confidently raised a stone, clasped in his fist, and gently propped it on the correct space. He finished the sequence, performing the fully correct solution. As soon as he finished, his head shot up, hoping for praise from his new teacher, still standing. "What do you think?"

            Hikaru smiled slightly, humoring the young boy. "Well, it's correct. But it wasn't very challenging."

            Put off by the unexpected reaction, Midou's shoulders sank in disappointment. Hikaru rolled the soggy backpack he had been carrying off his shoulder, and held it in front of his chest, removing a pile of books from it. "Here. These should present more of a challenge," he said, tossing them across the room into Midou's outstretched arms. Catching them deftly, he laid the slightly moist books on the ground next to him. "Meijin Touya's Study Problems, Graded Tsumego for Beginners… this is good stuff!"

            Shindou nodded. "But it's way below my level. You can have them. I hope it helps."

            Midou had already begun leafing through a book proudly displaying the name "Tsumego for Kyu-level Players" on its spine. Choosing a problem seemingly at random, he placed it on the board, thought for a split second, and once again carried out the full sequence. He looked up once again, fishing for a compliment. "How's that?"

            Hikaru was slightly shocked by the quick solution, but determined not to give in to undeserved praise. "Not bad. Try solving the last chapter of that book before my next visit." 

            Midou leafed to the end to see what was in store for him, scanned a few problems, and nodded. "Alright, then. Doesn't look too hard."

            Hikaru dropped his empty backpack. "Alright, Midou-kun. Let's try another game, with a nine-stone handicap and reverse komi. You be black, and we'll review it once we're done."

            "Yes, sensei," Midou said, an edge of humor in his voice as Hikaru got down on his knees in front of him. "Hey," the golden-banged boy said, "If I ever become boring… tell me. I don't want this to become a chore."

            "You're boring me now. Let's play already!"

            He chuckled slightly. This boy did indeed remind Shindou of an earlier him. The passion, the overexcitedness, the unshakeable will to win, were all characteristic of his time in the Haze Jr. High Go team. 'He may not have a thousand-year-old ghost haunting him, like Touya said,' Hikaru thought to himself as he placed his first stone amidst the nine handicaps awarded to his opponent. 'But he's got me. And that may be almost good enough.' 

            "So, you see, by grabbing this shape point right here, you allow yourself lots of room to run towards the center. Also, it puts pressure on my group right here, so I won't be in any condition to stop you from connecting. Do you see?" Hikaru looked up from the board into the boy's concentrated face. The game had ended in less than an hour, but Shindou was amazed at the progress Midou had made since their last game.

            His pupil nodded, his eyes still concentrating on the position. "Yes, I get that. But what if I atari this stone here, and then connect?"

            "No good," Hikaru shook his head, somewhat disappointed by the inexperienced suggestion that had just been offered. "I can ignore that atari and cut you off. What I'm left with far outweighs that one stone you just captured, doesn't it?"

            "Ah…" Midou lowered his eyes. "That's right."

            "But don't be discouraged, you're doing great." Shindou said, very truthfully. "It's amazing how much you've grown in just three days."

            The other boy's face lit up happily, evidently exuberant at his compliment. "Really? Thanks, it's a breeze with all those books you gave me. The problems in there are really easy, but they're helping me grow nonetheless!"

            "Yes, you're really good at tsumego, there's no denying that." Shindou frowned. "Your problem doesn't lie there at all. Your weak point is your lack of global view."

            "Global view?"

            "Yes. Go can be likened to an all-out war between two sides. Battles are won and lost over the field. Capturing a few stones doesn't guarantee automatic victory, just as losing a corner doesn't necessarily spell defeat. Your problem is that you concentrate too much on the local fights without keeping an eye on what's happening across the board. It's so easy to trick you into thinking you've won a battle, and that makes make you lose the war."

            "How do I get over that?"

            "Well, for starters, stop treating a game of Go as a series of unrelated tsumego spread out across the board. What you do on one part of the board can and will affect the battles everywhere else. Keep that in mind."

            Midou bowed. "Yes, sensei."

            Shindou bowed back, and stood up, stretching his legs which had been painfully stuck in a Seiza stance for the past hour. "Well, I think that'll be it for today. Try to do chapter 3 of '_Graded Tsumego for Beginners_' by tomorrow. Don't spend more than twenty seconds on any question."

            "Tomorrow?"

            "Yeah. I've got a pro game on Saturday, I can't make it then, so I thought I'd come a day earlier than usual." Hikaru winked, stretching one last time. "These lessons will have to get more and more frequent if you want to be serious about this. And it's not like I have anything better to do anyway—I'm just studying Go at home every day, except when I have pro games."

            "Yes. Well, then, thank you for the game, Sensei." 

            Hikaru bowed one last time before grabbing his empty backpack off the ground and slinging it over his shoulder. "No problem, just keep up the good work. You're getting better every day! Ja ne, Midou-kun!"

            The young boy continued looking down at the Goban in front of him. His eyes darted suddenly to one of the corners. Had he seen something there a second ago? It had looked like a stain, like water.

            Or tears.

            Or blood.

            His head shot up to look at Shindou. For a second, he could again faintly distinguish an outline. An outline of another figure, tall and in flowing robes. A tall pointed hat lay on top of a head adorned with flowing long hair. Midou's eyes widened, but in a second-it was gone, and the boy wondered whether or not he had actually seen it. Shaking his head, he put it out of his mind for now.  

            Midou stared straight ahead as he heard his teacher's footsteps recede down the narrow staircase. He could hear him shout a farewell to his parents before closing the door behind him, leaving Midou to his thoughts. 

            Something Shindou had said had struck him. 

'These lessons will have to get more and more frequent if you want to be serious about this.'

Serious? Him? Serious about anything? The thought had never occurred to him. He was used to being close to last on everything. He was failing school, had become the king of the lucky hit in baseball, wasn't exceptionally popular… now that he thought about it, he had never been particularly good at anything.

But now he was attracting the attention of a professional 3-dan Go player. He was being praised regularly, being told that he was making amazing progress. Could it be that, for the first time in his life, Midou Ashitaka was genuinely good at something?

Or was Shindou Hikaru just soft?

            Thankfully, the rain had seceded while Shindou had been giving Midou lessons. Although the streets were still filled with puddles, at least Hikaru was able to put away his umbrella. Memories flooded him as he looked down at the green object.

            "Hikaru, Hikaru! Why have umbrellas not changed in the last 1000 years?" The boy could remember his old teacher's words almost perfectly. Hikaru knew exactly he his mind was drifting towards the topic of Sai. That strange presence he had felt in Midou-kun's house, in proximity of that strange Goban… in that moment before leaving, he had been overwhelmed by his old teacher's presence.   

            But it had, of course, been only a strange memory. Sai was gone, and for the hundredth time since his disappearance, Hikaru forced that part of his life into the back of his mind. It did not do to dwell on the past. Sai was gone and never coming back. 

                It was best he get over that, and on with his life.


	4. Chapter 3: Revelation

**Author's Notes: My congratulations to everyone who noticed the similarities between this chapter's title and the title of chapter 117 of the Hikaru no Go manga! :D Kudos to you! It's one of the many subtle similarities between Hikaru and Midou's relationships with their mentors. The careful reader will pick up on many, many more than Hikaru does at the end of this chapter. Like the author "Formerly Avarice" so often points out, _everything_ is significant. No matter how small it seems, it was meant to be there. If you think you're reading too deep into it, you probably aren't. :P **

Midou-kun glanced down at the hastily-drawn map that was etched into a piece of crumpled-up paper. Lines crossed and intersected in a maze of streets, forming the complex cityscape that was Tokyo city. He quickly identified his location on one of the side streets, and compared it to where he needed to be. With a gasp of alarm, he realized that his destination should be right behind him.

            He turned around, not really knowing what to expect. He had never been to a Go Salon before, although the math teacher that had given him these directions had seemed absolutely elated about it.

            For all the hype he had been getting, Midou-kun had to admit to himself that the building itself was rather disappointing. It was wedged in between a Ramen restaurant and a small electronics store, barely wedging itself in between them. The establishment itself seemed to be bursting at the seams, with many cracked bricks and decaying mortar. The only point of pride on the outside of the salon seemed to be the bright backlit sign at the top of the signpost in front of the plaza. It contained a corner of the board featuring some complicated pattern of stones that was far beyond Midou's limited comprehension. Around it, characters that slightly resembled Japanese Kanji spelled out some foreign title, but Midou could not interpret these either.

            Hesitantly, Midou crossed the abandoned street to the forlorn building. He walked up to the door, knocked. When no response came, he clutched the knob and slowly opened the door, sticking his head in through the opening. It was dark inside, and the only thing on the other side of the door was a narrow corridor ending in a winding staircase. He shut the door behind him and proceeded through the hall, and turned into the stairs. Midou walked up slowly, his apprehension growing with every step.

            After three long, consecutive flights, the stairway ended in a small windowless door. A thin ray of light illuminated the hall from underneath the door, and for the first time, the enveloping silence of the building was lifted by sounds from the other side of the door.

            Midou approached it, putting his ear up to the wood. Familiar sounds came from inside- a man's voice raised in an unknown language. A soft coughing. And, most dominantly of all, the soft sound of go stones hitting wooden gobans.

            He opened the door and walked in, realizing that his eyes had become accustomed to darkness and were not at all ready for the bright glare of the ceiling lamps. A man at the desk turned to look at the new arrival, and his face registered surprise. It did not take Midou long to find out why-he was by far the visible minority as a Japanese. The heads turned to him from every corner of the room were all of obvious Korean descent, and Midou felt himself shrinking back towards the door.

            "Konnichiwa," the man behind the desk said in thickly accented Japanese. "It's 700-en for children."

            "Huh, what?" Midou was caught off guard at first, until the man's words registered in his mind. "Oh, right. To play."

            "That is why you're here, right?" The man grunted.

            He nodded slowly, and walked up to the counter. Fumbling with a 500-en bill and two hundred-en coins, he placed them on the counter, where a hairy hand quickly pulled them away and into the register.

            Midou turned to face the rows of tables, all filled with gobans that had half-finished games playing across them. He slowly walked up and down the aisles, looking down at the complex patterns. He didn't recognize any of them, and his mind could not present solutions for any of the problems posed. He turned to survey the whole room, taking in all it's occupants. By the looks of it, not one of them was Japanese, and not one was below 30 years of age.

            With a resigned sigh, Midou plopped himself into an empty chair, facing a blank Goban. With any luck, someone would take pity on the Japanese kid and give him a game of shidougo. Then, at least, his crossing the entire city to get here wouldn't have been a complete waste.

            His attention was drawn to the game beside him. Although he was still a beginner, even Midou-kun could make out the fact that white was in trouble, even if only for the fact that the white player was sweating profusely, a look of utmost concentration on his face.

            The stones portrayed their meaning well enough. The wall of black on Midou's left side was foreboding for the meaningful cluster of white on the edge of the board. Failure to survive in the harsh conditions would spell instant defeat for white. Unwillingly, knowing that he wouldn't be able to solve anything, his brain began to read ahead into the position, drawing upon the knowledge presented to him in the tsumego books Shindou had given him. At first, Midou doubted whether there was any way out at all for white. The trap black had lain certainly seemed secure enough. Squeezed into a corner, the white stones would be hard-pressed to find room for the two eyes necessary for life. However, as Midou-kun stared at it, along with the two Korean players engaged in the game, the position unfolded it's secrets to him. Move by move, like a puzzle, he could see the stones fighting their way across the board, playing out an inescapable path. In a few minutes, after trying every possibility in his mind, Midou-kun was certain of his solution. It was a surefire, beautiful path to victory.

            The Korean man controlling black looked down at Midou's concentrated face, a confident sneer on his own. "Hey, kid." 

            Midou's head shot up. "Yes, sir?" 

            The man nodded his head towards the board. "You think you can figure this one out?"

            Midou looked down and, reluctantly, nodded slowly. The man burst out laughing, sending the white player into even more alarm. "If you think you can do it, give it a try! C'mon, I'll let you help this guy out!"

            The boy's eyes widened, and the white player's mouth dropped in surprise. "But—are you sure that's OK? Am I allowed to receive help?"

            The man was doubled over in fits of hilarity. "What help could this boy be? He's not a day above 10! And most importantly, he's just a Japanese!"

            The white player looked up, a trace of fear in his eyes. "Japanese children are strong. Do you remember that boy from three years ago?"

            "The Insei… yes, I remember. There are exceptions to every rule, Kim." Nevertheless, he turned a wary eye towards Midou and asked, "Are you Insei?"

            Almost smiling at the ridiculous question, Midou shook his head, afraid to speak.

            "See, then? Let the boy have some fun! C'mon kid, try to help white out of this case!" He chuckled merrily at his own joke, and winked slyly at the white player, who was in complete submission. Black motioned with his hand for Midou to give the position a try. 

            He shifted his chair so that he faced the board, and taking a deep breath, fulfilled the solution he had played out in his mind. The black player watched at first with skeptical amusement that slowly melted into shocked disbelief. The white player had relief and joy creep slowly onto his countenance. He was saved.

            After Midou placed the last stone unnecessarily, granting the group it's second eye, he looked up eagerly into the face of the black player, hoping for praise. He immediately confused the disbelief and fear in the man's face to mean disapproval. "It's wrong?" He said, discouraged.

            Slowly, as if it took all his strength, the man shook his head, and a smile lit Midou's face. He quickly turned his head towards the white player, who was beaming at the solution. "So it's right?"

            "Yes!" The white player spoke this time. "It's perfect!"

            "You!" A voice spoke from behind him, startling Midou out of his seat. He quickly got up and turned to face the new arrival. To his shock, it was not another old man like everyone else in the thriving salon. 

            Although he was evidently Korean, the boy seemed to be his age, if not a bit older. He wore a red sweater, loose and baggy, with a bright red cap resting on his round head. Raven black hair spilled across his face, almost masking two eyes that shone with intensity. Midou took a cautious step back. "Yes, me."

            The boy pointed to the chair Midou had been sitting in a few seconds ago. "I am Hong Su-Young."

            Midou blinked. "Erm, I'm Midou Ashitaka. Pleased… to meet you."

            "Sit down."

            Not daring to resist the boy, Midou took a step and sat in the chair the boy had pointed to. Questions raced through his mind. Had this boy seen his solution? Was that why he took this sudden interest in him? What did he have in mind?

            The Korean boy walked across the row of tables to the other side and sat across from him. He took a bowl of stone, and opened it. It suddenly dawned on Midou what this boy was planning. "Huh? Wait, erm… Hong? You want to play a game?"

            He raised his eyes. "Yes, of course."

            "Oh… well, what strength are you?"

            "Five-dan pro. This is my second visit to Japan. I became Pro just after the first one. I'm here looking for someone."

            Midou nearly fell off his chair. "W-what? Pro?"

            He nodded shortly. "That's right. What about you?" 

            "Um…" Midou tried to think. Hikaru had never given him an exact rank, but he could get a fair estimation of himself through the graded tsumego books at his disposal. "I… suppose around 20k…"

            Hong's hand froze in it's task of drawing stones. "Stop playing around," he said strictly. "There is no way an amateur could have solved that situation."

            "You were watching that?"

            "Naturally. It was skillful, precise… something I'd expect of only one other person I know."

            "I see... well, then, it must be coincidence or something. Because I'm not really that strong at all. I just use some books that Hikaru gave me, and he's always saying how—"

            "_What did you say!?_"

            Midou was taken aback. Had he done something wrong? "Um, I was going to say that Hikaru is always saying how I never keep the whole board in mind and—"

            "Hikaru? Shindou Hikaru?"

            Midou blinked. Was his teacher that well known? He broke into a smile. "Yes, that's the one. You know him?"

            "Y-you're a student… of Shindou Hikaru?"

            Midou nodded slowly, with growing apprehension. "Is that bad?"

            Hong Su-Young did not answer the question, but rather, resolutely drew a fistful of white stones from the bowl, and placed them on the Goban, cupping them with his hand. "Now, nigiri. I must see your strength."

            "Oh… shouldn't we lay the handicap first? Tutoring go is usually played with a handicap…"

            "A handicap? Against a student of Shindou Hikaru? Please be serious. Nigiri."

            Shaking his head, Midou absently drew a black stone from his own bowl and placed it on the Goban, his head spinning. This boy apparently held a very high opinion of Shindou's skills, even though he had a higher rank that Midou's teacher. 

            "Who are you… Hikaru?" Midou whispered under his breath as Hong gave him the bowl of white stones. He took it, placed it to the right of the Goban as was custom, and lifted the lid.

            "I was still a Kyakkusei in Korea when I first came to Japan," Hong said in his accented Japanese as he played the first stone. "I had just dropped three consecutive classes. I was in the largest slump of my life. I was convinced that Go was not my way. My parents thought I needed a break, so I came to Japan."

            Midou did not know why he was being told this, but he listened attentively nonetheless as he played. 

            "I was here in the salon when Shindou Hikaru came with a couple of his insei friends. They came here to practice for the Pro Exam. Can you believe that? They came _here_ to _practice_!"

            Midou couldn't imagine what was wrong with that, but didn't say so. He simply placed his next stone, already consumed by a feeling that the game was lost already, despite it being only the eleventh move.

            "The idiot didn't even know about Korea. He started asking if we were any good. That's rich. Just that year, Japan didn't even qualify for a China x Japan x Korea tournament. We knocked them out in the preliminary. Not a single player made it."

            This was definitely news to Midou-kun. He had never considered the talents of other countries outside of Japan, although he thought it wouldn't be a good idea to mention this to the fiercely proud boy.

            "He was totally clueless. It made me really angry. And maybe a part of me wanted to vent all my frustrations from back home." He placed a stone, killing a large group of Midou's. "I offered to shidougo him. That only made him even angrier. He really doesn't like to be underestimated."

            Midou flashed back to his first meeting with the boy. He remembered Hikaru's red-blooded anger at his suggestion that he wasn't really a professional go player. But he had returned the next day, eager to judge his full skills. Whatever Hikaru's faults may be, he had true intentions in the end. Even his personal anger could be put behind him in order to help him. Midou felt his appreciation of the boy double.

            "We played an even game. I was so incited that I gave it 110%. Even I had to admit that the end result was due to a difference in skill, not a lapse of attention on my part."

            "So he won then?" Despite himself, Midou was quite fascinated by the story being told. His attention didn't really need to be on the game anymore anyway. It was lost already. It was just an excuse for the two children to talk.

            "By 1.5 moku. He was white like you are now. It was the most amazing game I've ever played, even to this day. Among all the Korean pros, I have never found a game that has satisfied me like that one did. Ultimately, I did lose. But I shall never forget that game. I went back to Korea a new person. I continued my ascent through the classes. And I passed the next Pro Exam. The same summer that Shindou Hikaru passed his. I have played and replayed that game thousands of times. Always looking for some key, some way to have turned it around. But there isn't, not really. Every opening I find, I know he can find the solution to."

            "He's really amazing, ne?"

            "He is. Which is why…" Hong sighed, "I was expecting a lot better from you. Please resign right now."

            Midou was taken aback. "Resign? Already? Are you kidding?"

            "There is no way for you to come back from this."

            "Darn right there isn't. I told you there wouldn't be from the beginning, but you didn't believe me. Now you're going to sit here and play this out so I can learn something. Unless _you_ want to resign?"

            Hong glared. "This game is a waste of time."

            "Not for me it isn't."

            "It is a waste of _my_ time."

            "Then you shouldn't have started this game." Midou placed a white stone. "Your move."

            Hong Su-Young shot him a dirty look, picked up his own stone and slammed it down into the correct spot.

            Now that the conversation was over, Midou's full concentration was on the game. All his resources were focused on the one-sided battle on the board. His mind entered the familiar stream of variations and solutions, analyzing a thousand possible outcomes. He could envision countless minor victories all over the board, but no crushing move that would turn the tables, however slightly, towards his advantage.

            Of course, he did not really expect one. Hong was, after all, a pro of even higher caliber than Shindou-kun, at least in terms of rank. The chances of pulling off anything impressive this game were slim.

            Midou watched Hong place the next stone. It was an interesting move, but one Midou had prepared for. He made his next move confidently, making atari on a vital stone.

            Hong predictably defended, which opened up the door for Midou's tactic. Sacrificing a small group, he played a tesuji that gained him some small influence in the top side.          

            He heard Hong gasp. His eyes shot up. The Korean boy seemed somewhat shocked and impressed by the turn of events, but Midou knew it was a small victory, not nearly enough to even put him back in the running. And mistakes would be large and plenty for him. Although Midou-kun adamantly refused to resign, he knew in his heart that he should. Small firefighting in tiny cuts across black's shape would net him some points, but it would never win the game. What white needed was a large, overall strategy. One that would take into account the whole board, like Hikaru so constantly insisted was vital, that would catch black off guard, and secure a crushing blow.

            The next move by black ignored the small casualty he would incur by playing tenuki, but rather brought about a much larger threat to white, one that forced his attention to the bottom edge of the board, away from the top side that was the hot spot for black.

            Midou reached for a stone, and was about to place it in the standard spot, defending the obvious cut at the bottom. However, his hand stopped an inch from the wood.

            Hong gasped. Midou grinned.

            It was the standard move, the expected one. But in this game, Midou couldn't afford to play by a conformed style. He had to take unreasonable risks. Taking Hikaru's words into mind, Midou analyzed each and every part of the board. He let go of his tendency to isolate the board into sections of go problems. He couldn't afford to do that. Not this game.

            As he concentrated, the whole board began to make sense. It all fell into place, similar to the sensation he got when solving a local fight, and yet remarkably different. He wasn't just reading ahead a small isolated corner—he was seeing the future and possibilities of the whole board. For the first time, Midou truly appreciated that Go was a war, not a battle. He could see in his mind, the black and white armies clashing all over the wood, entwining themselves over the board. Now the danger was here, a second later it was there. The focus always changing, shifting from one side to the other, and yet every outcome was vitally important to all other parts of the game.

            Taking a deep breath, he placed the stone far away from the obvious response. It was towards the center. Although Midou wasn't exactly sure why he had made that move, he felt instinctively that it was correct. In his mind's eye, he could see it being perfectly positioned for the large center-oriented conflict he knew would come. Although this move would not win him the game, it was a step in the right direction.

            Midou looked up at Hong's face, expecting a look of mild approval. However, the Korean boy wore a mask of shock and amazement. He looked up and down at the stone and at Midou, as if doubting whether he had really made the move.

            "…Sh-shindou!"

            Midou looked concerned. "No, I'm Midou, remember?"

            "That move… it radiates Shindou. I should know. I've replayed his games thousands of times."

            Midou looked incuriously at Hong. Had he just been compared to Shindou? The Shindou Hikaru that Hong looked up to?

            The boy smiled, beamingly. He had a feeling he had just received the biggest compliment possible.

            The bells at the top of the door to the bakery rung as a familiar visitor stepped through. This time, Midou's mother was at the counter instead of in the kitchen. Upon seeing the familiar face, she beamed.

            "Ah, hello Shindou-kun!"

            He bowed in return. "Hello, Ashitaka-san!"

            "Is Midou-kun up in his room?"

            His mother looked up at the ceiling as if she could visually confirm his presence through the wood. "Yes. That's the only place he ever is since he's learned Go, except the occasional Salon." However, her voice contained fierce pride, and not disapproval.

            "I see. Thank you!" Hikaru tossed her a wave and bounded up the steps. As he neared Midou's door, he could hear the familiar sound of stone hitting Goban, meaning that once again, Midou was hard at work.

            He opened the door and looked in. The first thing he saw was the rose-colored Goban.

            _His second dream with Sai.__ The Goban that contained the solution to the Tsumego. Had Sai been trying to tell him something?_

Midou did not raise his head. He had not even heard Hikaru entering the room.

            _Sai had always commented on Hikaru's powers of concentration. How he couldn't hear Sai when he was in the middle of a particularly engrossing game. Sai had always said it was one of his greatest strengths._

"Midou!" Hikaru said, trying to clear his throat and attract his student's attention. The boy looked up from the board. The delight from playing Go that had been in his eyes amplified at the sight of his teacher. "Hikaru-kun!"

            _The unbridled joy and enthusiasm of his early days with Sai, when he had been a member of the Haze Jr. High Go Club.__ The eagerness with which he attacked each new position, with Sai always at his side. Had he taken his master for granted back then, just as he had taken his membership?_

Hikaru lowered the backpack from his back and put it on the ground. He sat down in Seiza across from Midou, who was looking expectantly into Hikaru's face. 

            _The thousands of games played against Sai each night. The endless struggles, always ending in a loss, yet always giving him some new insight into the game._

Shindou looked at the game on the board. White was receiving a sound beating, and for a second, Hikaru thought it was a game played by him, but the playing style was completely different.

            _"Even though you have been playing for a month now, Hikaru, it is still quite an achievement to be able to memorize a whole game already! Your progress is excellent!"_

"Hikaru-sempai! Watch this next move!" Midou said brightly. He took a stone and placed it. Normally, Midou-kun with his limited vision would have defended on the lower edge. That was the obvious move for someone of Midou-kun's level. However, this move was a far dive in the very center of the board, far detached from the major conflict.

            _The Wakajishisen.__ Sai had been very impressed with one of the moves he had made. It had seemed like a mistake at the time, even to Sai. But Hikaru had turned it around into a very useful situation. It hadn't been enough to win him the game, but it had impressed everyone there, most importantly of all, Touya Akira._

Hikaru's eyes widened.

            "Eh, do you like it, Hikaru?" Midou asked, fishing for a compliment yet again. "Guess who I played it against?"

            Hikaru couldn't guess

            "Hong Su-Young!"

            Hikaru gasped.

            _"If you beat me, I'll remember your name! I'll remember the name Shindou Hikaru!"_

"He said he knew you. That you played a really good game!"

            "Hong… he's here? In Japan?"

            "Yes! And guess what? That move I just showed you… he said it was as good as one of yours!"

            _Yun__-sensei had said he was as good as the first game Sai had played after watching his match with Korean Kakyuusei Hong Su-Young. It had been the most treasured compliment Hikaru had ever received._

"I couldn't think of a good enough move, Sensei," Midou went on. "I kept slipping into my old habit of being to localized. So… I went into your mind. I tried to think what you would have done!"

            _The second-last game of the Pro Exam, against Waya.__ Hikaru had needed a way to save the black stones. "Sai, I thought of what you would have done in that situation! It worked! I passed!"_

"Even though I lost the game, he was apparently very impressed by some of my moves! He said he'd come by to the Salon more often, to play me! Now I've got two professional teachers! Isn't that great, Hikaru?"

            _"Sai…the thousands of games played at Touya's Go Salon after the game Hikaru lost to him in the Honinbou League, the night before he had first dreamt of Sai. The thousands of arguments over complex ideas and strategies. And most importantly of all, the stunning growth both he and his rival had undergone._

            "Hikaru! I've decided! I want to apply for the Nihon-Kiin! I think I'd like to become an pro!"

            _The Goban in his grandfather's attic.__ The thousand-year old ghost contained within. The path following to Touya Akira._

_            Why did you leave Sai? You haven't attained the Hand of God!_

_            Or maybe…_

_            That's not why you came. You left once I became a pro. Did you realize something, Sai? Did you finally understand why God had given you 1000 years of time? Wasn't it to attain the Hand of God?_

_            Or was it… to pass along that mission to me? So that I may pass it along to someone else? Generation by generation, thousands of new talents and ideas added to the goal, the final ideal of attaining the Hand of God. It required so many insights and points of view… _

_            Then what was Hikaru's mission? Not to achieve the Hand of God, but rather… _

_            To pass it on._

_            As Sai had done._

            Midou looked at Hikaru in confusion. For a statement of such magnitude, Midou had gotten almost no reaction from Hikaru. Did he not think he was worthy of being a pro?

            He looked again. For the second time, Midou could see another figure standing next to the boy, who seemed to be in shock. Unlike last time, it was more than an outline. It was a vivid image of a man with long, flowing hair, and a tall hat from the Heian era. White and purple flowing robes gave him a sense magnificence.

            Who was he?

            The man did not seem to be paying any attention to Midou. He was looking at Hikaru with sad eyes. Sad, and yet somehow hopeful. A melancholic sadness. His fan was covering his mouth, but his lips, curled into a smile, could be faintly detected behind them.

            Suddenly, the man turned his head to look at Midou, and a youthful happiness and excitement filled the previously sad eyes. He reached his arm out and held the fan he had been clutching in front of Midou's chest.

            Midou looked from the offered fan to Hikaru. The boy was staring straight at the ghost. He was not the only one who could see it. Shindou could too. The blond-banged boy almost had tears in his eyes. His lower lips were trembling dangerously.

            "Sai… I finally understand."

            Midou, alarmed, looked back at where the ghost had been. But he was gone now. And somehow, instinctively, both new they would never see him again, neither in the waking or sleeping realm.

            "Midou," Hikaru's voice said, and the boy turned his head to face him. Shindou had wiped the threat of tears away with his sleeve, although nothing could be done about the bright redness of his face. "I think… that's a great idea!" 

            Midou's shocked face turned into a wide grin. "Really?"

            Hikaru smiled. "Really."


End file.
